Apple may take some heat for its App Store policies, but never let it be said that they aren’t constantly working to improve their developer relationships. This week’s big change came in the form of new tools to allow iPhone OS developers to set the exact release date of their applications as well as schedule price changes.AppleInsider has all the details on the new changes to Apple’s iTunesConnect web interface, which is not limited only to iPhone OS developers -- it applies to all of Apple’s iTunes media partners. The new tools automate two tasks that publishers will likely see as a welcome change.

Publishers can now schedule a release date in advance for both new and updated applications, which is perfect for developers who want to time an app’s release around a press release or other event. Developers can also schedule price changes to occur at a specific date, or even end them the same way, which will be useful for limited-time sale pricing. Previously, devs had to handle such tasks manually.

As you can see from the screenshot courtesy of iPhones.ru above, “a publisher can choose to release an app on March 4th under pricing tier 1 ($0.99) and pre-schedule the price to rise to tier 2 ($1.99) two weeks later,” AppleInsider explains. “Successive price changes could also be scheduled in the interface; it's not limited to two entries.”

Never let it be said that Apple isn’t listening to developers and trying to make their lives easier.